Mexico voices ‘worry and irritation’ to Trump aides

Mexico expressed “worry and irritation” about US policies to two of President Donald Trump’s top envoys, giving a chilly reply to the new administration’s hard line on immigration, trade and security.
Comments by Trump about a “military operation” to deport criminals added to the tense atmosphere, and prompted a clarification from Homeland Security chief John Kelly, one of the US officials visiting Mexico City.
The US government angered Mexico earlier this week by saying it was seeking to deport many illegal immigrants to Mexico if they entered the United States from there, regardless of nationality. It is the latest point of friction between neighbours that have also been at odds over Trump’s vow to build a wall on the border and his attempts to browbeat Mexico into giving concessions on trade.
“There exists among Mexicans worry and irritation about what are perceived to be policies that could be harmful for the national interest and for Mexicans here and abroad,” Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray told a news conference.
He was speaking after talks in the Mexican capital with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Kelly, who later met with President Enrique Pena Nieto. The Mexican leader scrapped a summit meeting with Trump in January as tensions rose. Tillerson and Kelly emphasised traditionally strong US-Mexico ties and both sides pledged further dialogue on migration, trade and security issues. Pena Nieto said the talks were a sign of the will to build a constructive relationship.
Two Mexican newspapers leaked comments from Videgaray, however, that bolstered the perception that Mexico is taking a more robust approach to its dealings with Trump, following jibes that Pena Nieto should stand up to his counterpart.
If the United States taxes imports from Mexico, there will be a response that “hits them where it hurts,” La Jornada and Reforma reported Videgaray as saying, based on recordings obtained of a closed-door session with lawmakers. Videgaray warned of counter-taxes and tariffs targeting US congressional districts most reliant on exports to Mexico if Trump started limiting trade.
There were some signs of congeniality behind closed doors. Tillerson drank tequila with Mexican counterparts at dinner, a person familiar with the event said. Pena Nieto’s office described the US officials as professional and constructive. Looking stern as he stood beside the US visitors, Videgaray said it was “a complex time” for US-Mexican relations, which have gone downhill quickly since Trump’s election last November.
Videgaray and Pena Nieto have been criticised at home for being too willing to engage with the Republican president, who has repeatedly cranked up tension with the country ahead of key meetings. Opposition politicians and a handful of protesters demanded that Pena Nieto snub the visitors, and even Economy Minister Idelfonso Guajardo had said the meeting with the president might not happen, depending on the tone of the talks in the morning.
Mexico relies heavily on exports to its neighbour. But stakes are also high for the United States, not least because a breakdown in relations with Mexico could affect extensive co-operation on the fight against narcotics and stemming the flow of Central American illegal immigrants that reach the US border.
Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong said the two countries needed to strengthen intelligence sharing, as well as take more action to stem the flow of weapons and drug money from the United States and to shut down criminal organisations. “Mexico needs the United States, and the United States also needs Mexico. Our countries will always be neighbours so the best thing would be to have agreements that work for both equally,” Osorio Chong said in comments at the Foreign Ministry.
In a concession to Mexican concerns, both Kelly and Tillerson acknowledged the need to stop arms and drug proceeds moving south, and praised Mexico’s extensive programs to turn back Central American immigrants travelling north. “There is no mistaking that the rule of law matters along both sides of our border,” Tillerson said.
None of the officials made direct references to the deportation of immigrants from third countries to Mexico, or to paying for the border wall planned by Trump, a red-flag issue for Mexico.